U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon joined Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine and U.S. Senator Bernie Moreno at an event to promote school choice investments from the federal government.
McMahon joined the Ohio politicians at the Sept. 24 event held at the Center for Christian Virtue office on Broad Street in downtown Columbus, after touring a private Christian school, and met with Ted Carter, president of Ohio State University.
“I am working to put myself out of a job, because we are returning education to the states,” McMahon said. “We are working incredibly hard on school choice, and thank you for reminding us to trust in the power of parents to choose the best educational pathway for your kids.”
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon at a Sept. 24 event in Columbus where she touted federal investments in school choice, including a $105 million investment in expanding Ohio’s charter schools
She highlighted school choice during the event, pointing to a $1,700 tax credit that states can opt into which would allow residents to contribute to a “Scholarship Granting Organization” and claim a tax credit. She also announced an investment into a school grant program that McMahon said will provide Ohio $105 million over five years to open and expand charter schooling in the state.
“The president is such a believer in school choice, he does not believe that any child should be trapped in a failing school,” McMahon said.
McMahon pointed to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) report, also known as “The Nation’s Report Card,” released in September, which shows that high school students across public and private schools continued to backslide in math, science and reading in 2024. “School choice is our way out of this slump,” she said.
“Parents, you, the decision-makers of your children, know the needs of your children best, better than some bureaucrat like me in Washington, D.C.,” McMahon said. “You should be able to choose the schooling option that maximizes your children’s best opportunity for achievement.”
McMahon also addressed central Ohio school district concerns about withheld federal funding. In July, the Trump administration said it was unfreezing federal funding marked for programs for English as a Second Language learners, teacher training, and academic enrichment after freezing it for over a month. Ohio’s allocation of the funding amounted to $184 million, or 12.5% of its federal funding of K-12 schools, The Dispatch previously reported.
Responding to a question from The Dispatch about the consistency of funding, McMahon asked for “a little bit of grace because we were a new administration” and were reviewing existing grants.
“That review has been done, it has been made now,” McMahon said. “The release of those grants were coming through, and I think you will see consistency of the program.”
Moreno said during his address at the event that Ohio needs to prepare for a “transformation unlike anything we’ve ever seen,” citing how artificial intelligence (AI) will affect “every sector of our lives.”
“And we have to start in kindergarten, all the way up to our higher education institutions, to make certain that Ohio leads America and America leads the world,” Moreno said.
Cole Behrens covers K-12 education and school districts in central Ohio. Have a tip? Contact Cole at cbehrens@dispatch.com or connect with him on X at @Colebehr_report
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: School choice investments touted by US education secretary in Columbus